The invention relates generally to the field of apparatuses for loading condoms onto mandrels. More particularly, the invention relates to a condom loading apparatus utilizing a number of rods to expand the condom as it is placed onto the mandrel, where the apparatus is improved by providing a secondary set of rods to retain the ring of the condom while it is being loaded onto the mandrel.
The handling of condoms by mechanized means has long been a problem within the industry. Because condoms are elastic, non-rigid devices made of thin-walled latex or similar materials which maintain no particular shape or configuration unless supported from within or held by outside means, and because the condoms are very susceptible to tearing if mishandled, few devices have been developed which can successfully perform handling operations on condoms, such that most handling operations are by necessity carried out by hand. As an example of a common handling operation in condom manufacture, it is required that each condom be quality tested for the presence of minute holes after it is manufactured. This is commonly done by stretching each condom by hand onto a metal mandrel of appropriate shape. The condom is then passed over an electrically charged net and if any current passes from the net to the mandrel the condom is rejected, the completed circuit indicating that there is a hole in the insulating material forming the condom. The condoms which pass the test are then removed from the mandrel for packaging.
An apparatus for loading condoms onto mandrels is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,564,552, issued Oct. 16, 1996 to Vonier et al., and in U.S. Pat. No. 5,499,898, issued Mar. 19, 1996 to Vonier at al., the disclosures of both being incorporated herein by reference. The ""898 patent discloses a complete testing apparatus which may comprise the condom loading apparatus disclosed in more detail in the ""552 patent. The apparatus of the ""552 patent comprises in general a mandrel loading means mounted onto a track, the loading means comprising a number of thin, elongated, generally parallel-oriented, expansion rods which occupy a relatively narrowin-diameter area in the passive position in order to receive a condom, but which can be expanded outwardly around the mandrel to expand the condom such that it can be positioned on the mandrel for subsequent testing. The configuration of the carriage and mount holding the expansion rods allows the carriage to be passed completely over the length of the mandrel and beyond into a recessed position with the expansion rods removed completely from the condom to allow subsequent movement of the loaded mandrel for testing purposes. The carriage is mounted onto a track such that it receives the condom from a condom retaining means at the uppermost portion of the track and is brought downward on a line such that the central longitudinal axis of the group of expansion rods is on the same line as the central longitudinal axis of a mandrel in the loading position. The mandrel itself forces the expansion rods outward in the radial direction, thereby stretching the condom to create an opening of sufficient size to receive the mandrel. There is sufficient friction between the condom and the expansion rods such that the condom loads onto the mandrel. The movement of the carriage down and past the mandrel removes the expansion rods from the condom, leaving the condom mounted on the mandrel. The mandrel can now be moved for testing and the carriage returned to the upper position. This cycle is then repeated for successive condoms.
It has been found that problems will often occur during the loading of the condom onto the mandrel due to variations in the elasticity of the condoms. This is typically a result of the age of the condoms, in that condoms freshly manufactured tend to be more elastic than older condoms, or may also be a result of manufacturing tolerances, ambient temperature variation or other reasons. During the loading operation, some condoms will not load completely onto the mandrel because they have lower than average elasticity, while some condoms may have higher than average elasticity, in which case they are pulled too far onto the mandrel. Since it is crucial in the testing operation for the condom to be properly loaded onto the mandrel, it is desirable to improve on the condom loading apparatus and methodology.
It is an object of this invention to provide an improved apparatus which can mechanically load a condom onto a mandrel. It is a further object of this invention to provide such an apparatus which utilizes expansion rods mounted on a movable carriage to stretch the condom onto the mandrel, whereby the condom is first positioned on the expansion rods in a passive state and the carriage is moved in a linear motion to expand the expansion rods radially to load the mandrel and then cleared into a retracted position, such that the loaded mandrel can then be moved for testing. It is a further object of this invention to provide such an apparatus which utilizes a secondary set of shorter detaining rods to detain the rolled ring at the base of a condom as it is being loaded onto a mandrel, wherein the detaining rods are expanded radially in conjunction with the expansion rods as the carriage is moved over the mandrel. These and other objects not specifically expressed at this point will become clear in the following description.
The invention comprises in general an improvement to a condom loading apparatus having mandrel loading means mounted onto a track, the loading means comprising a number of thin, elongated, parallel oriented, expansion rods disposed on a mount, where the expansion rods occupy a relatively restricted area of small diameter about a central longitudinal axis when in the passive position in order to receive a condom, but which can be expanded radially around the circumference of an elongated mandrel to stretch the condom onto the mandrel. The configuration of the carriage and mount holding the expansion rods allows the carriage to be passed over the length of the mandrel into a recessed position to allow subsequent movement of the loaded mandrel for testing purposes. The carriage is mounted onto a track such that it receives the condom onto the expansion rods in the passive configuration from a condom retaining means at the uppermost portion of the track and is brought downward on a line such that the central axis of the group of expansion rods is on the same line as the central axis of a mandrel in the loading position. The mandrel expands the expansion rods in the radial direction, thereby stretching the condom such that the condom is positioned onto the mandrel. The movement of the carriage down and past the mandrel strips the condom from the expansion rods onto the mandrel when the tip of the condom contacts the end of the mandrel, and the mandrel can now be moved for testing and the carriage returned to the upper position. This cycle is then repeated for successive condoms.
The improvement comprises means to grasp or detain the condom ring during the loading operation, the means comprising a set of detaining rods of significantly shorter length than the expansion rods, such that the detaining rods extend only a short distance into the condom. The free ends of the detaining rods are curved or hooked radially outward a short distance, or provided with a small protrusion. Like the expansion rods, the detaining rods occupy an area of small diameter in the passive state, but are expanded in the radial direction when drawn onto the mandrel. The outwardly extending detent ends of the detaining rods stretch the wall of the condom at a point above the rolled ring at the base of the condom, such that they temporarily retain the condom ring as the carriage is drawn onto the mandrel to prevent the condom from misleading. With the condom properly loaded on the mandrel, the detent ends retract into an annular recess on the mandrel body to release the condom ring.